Agency Success Interview with Frankie Fihn

In this month’s Agency Success Interview, Frankie Fihn of Beyond Agency Profits shares how he created his own success story. He’ll cover some dos & don’ts geared toward helping those getting started with their own agency—or those ready to grow it to the next level!

Outline of This Episode

• [1:01] Learn about Frankie’s business
• [3:35] How Frankie’s structures his life + business
• [7:38] Frankie’s services: Digital omnipresence
• [18:17] How Frankie retains clients
• [26:42] Frankie’s meetingless agency philosophy
• [34:24] Ongoing check-ins with clients
• [38:23] How to learn more about Frankie
• [40:09] How to move to the next level

How Frankie’s structures his life + business

Frankie started his agency in 2007 by necessity—the financial crisis had struck and there were no jobs. He ended up doing SEO for a plastic surgeon. Before he knew it, he had a thriving agency. He pivoted his business to focus on personal injury lawyers. Now, he has an agency that is streamlined, well-organized, and practically runs itself. Why did he pivot to law firms?

Frankie believes that 60% of your success comes down to who you choose as clients. He only works with law firm clients who are busy and successful. If they aren’t already advertising somewhere else, Frankie isn’t going to try and convince them. He’s dealing with people who work 80+ hours a week. They prefer succinct communication, so his agency sells it as a benefit. They won’t waste their client’s time. Frankie points out that you should “Intentionally choose the clients that are going to make your life better instead of miserable.”

So how does he develop the relationships? Frankie attends major legal conferences. He will cherry-pick those he wants to work with. It can be as simple as sending them a message on Facebook or using Click2Mail saying, “Hey, I have an idea for you…”

Frankie’s service packages: Digital omnipresence

Personal injury lawyers have some of the most expensive leads. 78 of the 100 most expensive keywords on Google AdWords are law-related terms. To get their clients quick wins, Frankie’s agency retargets leads the law firms may already have on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and more. Why? Most law firms don’t have a traffic problem—they have a conversion problem. He helps them monetize the flow they already have.

Frankie doesn’t charge retainers. Instead, he’s moved toward revenue-sharing. When he first started, he charged plastic surgeons $400 a month because the number sounded right. At the time, he hopped on a phone call with a plastic surgeon to have a conversation. He apologized for taking up his time. The plastic surgeon cut him off and said he’d tripled his practice since Frankie started doing their SEO. Frankie realized he wasn’t charging enough. Now, because they can attribute that leads are from the work they do, they charge a percentage of revenue instead of a monthly fee (i.e. they pay per lead).

Welcome Aboard: How Frankie retains clients

Frankie prefers to welcome new clients aboard as if they were a family member. Frankie sends an Edible Arrangement and cookies within hours of signing the client. It creates an amazing first impression and the client feels like they made the right decision working with you. It sets the foundation for everything moving forward. Those little extras in the first 100 days are key.

The goal is to engineer the client experience beyond simply reporting. Frankie saw one of his clients post on social media that she’d been working so much that her dogs were feeling neglected. So Frankie sent her an industrial-sized bin of treats with a note that said, “Here’s the apology for your dogs.” That’s why he retains clients. You can’t fake caring about people.

Frankie’s meetingless agency philosophy

Frankie believes if you can’t sell your offer in 1-3 sentences, adding anything else won’t make it easier to sell. Instead of asking for a yearly commitment to get results for potential clients, ask for 48 hours. Take on all the risk and get them a small win. If it doesn’t work out, give them a refund. It’s not a large decision for them to make—and it eliminates the need for the Zoom call.

So what do they do to pitch potential clients? He gives a dramatic demonstration. He sends clients a Loom video that shares what their experience will look like (something visual that captures their attention). The middle section of the video is their plan for getting the client results. If you’ve structured the video properly, you’ll get a “yes,” or a question. Why such a short and streamlined process? It was built out of necessity—he didn’t want to miss his daughter growing up.

So how does he report results? How does he doing ongoing check-ins? What is his communication philosophy? Learn more about Frankie’s process in this interview!

Resources & People Mentioned

• Frankie’s Book: Beyond the Agency Box
• Never Lose a Customer Again
• Click2Mail

Connect with Frankie Fihn

• FREE resources: Beyond Agency Profits
• The Beyond Agency Profits Facebook Group

Connect With Josh Nelson

• Josh’s Coaching Page on Facebook
• The Agency Success Facebook Group
• www.SevenFigureAgency.com
• Seven Figure Agency on YouTube
• Josh on Twitter: @joshnelsonimc
• Josh on LinkedIn

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